


change your mind, time and again

by mollivanders



Category: Heroes - Fandom
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-05-06
Updated: 2010-05-06
Packaged: 2017-10-30 11:12:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/331137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mollivanders/pseuds/mollivanders
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For all intents and purposes, Sylar’s a reformed criminal (or so they say). The monster lurks, waiting for its moment.</p><p>It comes with Hiro’s death.</p>
            </blockquote>





	change your mind, time and again

**Author's Note:**

> **Title: change your mind, time and again**  
>  Rating: PG  
> Characters: Sylar/Charlie, past Sylar/Elle, Adam  
> Summary: Spoilers through Season 4.  
> Disclaimer: Heroes belongs to _NBC_ , I own nothing.

For all intents and purposes, Sylar’s a reformed criminal (or so they say). The monster lurks, waiting for its moment.

It comes with Hiro’s death.

The time traveler holds on for a few more months, years, until the headaches return and this time, there’s no cure. It’s something not even Sylar’s powers can fix but the time traveler isn’t interested in saving himself when he shows up at the watchmaker’s door.

“You saved her, once before,” Hiro tells him in a grave voice. “You can do it again.”

Sylar looks away, across the pieces of broken clocks and watches. “I have work to do.”

Hiro sighs and shakes Sylar’s shoulders. “Yes, work. Not here – a hero’s work.” He crushes an origami swan into Sylar’s palm.

Sylar waits until Hiro’s eyes slide shut, his chest stops rising, before he drags a finger across his skull. Hesitates – the thrill of that ability, touched again, is more dangerous than he knows.

There’s more blood than he remembers.

 

He’s stopped counting the years but he manages to find his way back to the carnival, to where it all began to end and watches as Samuel tells an old man to take the waitress somewhere far away, where nobody would find her.

She’s much prettier than he remembered (the monster remembers). He circles the trio, making his way to stand behind the time traveler and grabs his arm when the old man scrunches his face.

This time, they land a hundred years ago, in the middle of a war between Japan and Russia.

 

The old man is shot where he stands by a stray bullet and Sylar reacts, knocks Charlie over and they crawl through the tall grass toward a forest. “What is going on?” she whispers and he sighs, rolls his eyes at her. “Now isn’t really the time?” She glares at him and for half a moment he thinks she might make it out alive.

His survival's a foregone conclusion, obviously.

They make it to the tree line and he pulls her up, drags her with him, running away from the sound of gunfire until she yanks out of his grasp and stops. “I’m not running any more – I’ve lost my shoes and my head hurts.”

“It’s not an aneurism, I took it out, remember?” he retorts and leans over, exhaustion catching up with him. “You’re just complaining.”

“You seem pretty good at it yourself,” she argues and steps back, leaning against a tree. “Where did you take us?”

“I didn’t do anything – it was the old man. I’m here because Hiro asked me to help you, for no other reason," he says, telling a partial lie.

She laughs, faithless, and starts to walk away from him. “Hiro said you were dangerous. I’m not going anywhere with you.”

He grabs her wrist from behind and as she turns to hit him he presses the paper swan in her hand. “It’s from Hiro. And I can either take you back or you can stay here… wherever we are.”

Charlie’s eyes narrow, hand clutching the talisman. “Why did he send you? Why didn’t he come himself?”

He considers lying to her but she’ll find out anyway (the monster enjoys the truth too much).

“Because Hiro’s dead, Charlie.”

 

She won’t talk to him, won’t look at him, just keeps walking a few paces ahead of him and he’s not motivated to catch up with her yet. He expects she’ll come around, but in the meantime he just talks aloud to himself; not to her at all.

“I knew a girl like you, once,” he begins. “She was angry and stubborn. She had these crazy eyes, like she wanted to suck you down some dark tunnel that had some great secret at the bottom, but it’s not like she really had any secrets. And she had these little hands that looked great wielding a gun. The best.”

He talks about other people too but skips the murders. He remembers every one and part of him, a small part that won’t go away, relishes them still. They were beautiful and artful, and he’ll always be a monster. He’ll never make up for what he’s done because he’s not altogether sorry.

He’s just moved on to bigger and better things.

 

Charlie finally stops an hour after it gets dark and in the light of the small fire she makes he can see the scratches from tree branches and shrubbery on her face and legs. He doesn’t help with the fire, just watches her work and figure things out for herself. She’s pretty good at it.

At last, she speaks.

“What happened to her?” she asks in a low voice, not looking at him while she stokes the fire and picks at the berries she found. “Did she go somewhere?”

His stomach clenches (a little) and he pokes at the fire too. “Somewhere I couldn’t follow.”

She knows what he means, and between the fitful naps he takes he sees her watching him all night.

 

The next day they walk side by side, even though he’s not sure where they’re going and Charlie’s still recalcitrant and silent. He’s tired of talking and getting bored so he asks her a question this time, instead of rambling. “Are you ever going to want to go back? Or am I wasting my time? Because I have other things to do, you know.”

She scoffs, looks him up and down. “You have Hiro’s ability. You have all the time in the world.”

“I already did,” he replies and stops walking. “Seriously, how long are you going to keep this up? I can take you to Hiro when he’s not dead. Stop being such a baby.”

Charlie folds her arms and looks at him with a blank expression. “Two days ago I had a clot in my brain and lived in Texas in the 21st century. Now I’m wandering through time with a serial killer who likes to romanticize the death of girls he killed. Excuse me if I’m looking for a Plan B.”

Sylar smirks and looks at her, really looks, for the first time. “Hiro never mentioned you were tough.”

“It doesn’t matter now, does it?” she answers and looks forward. “When we find a town I’ll decide what to do with you. Figure out where and when we are; then worry about the rest.”

She’s right. He does have all the time in the world.

 

Wiju, Japan. April 1904.

 

Charlie’s look of surprise is worth the trek so Sylar lets her book two rooms at the inn and stays at the bar. He doesn’t speak Japanese, but apparently the sign for a drink is universal and the blonde man next to him tells him not to get the clear stuff.

“Name’s Adam,” he says with an English slur and Sylar nods. “Gabriel. You from around here?” The man laughs. “Actually, yeah mate. This country’s my home.”

Past the smell of his breath and the grate of his voice, Sylar can sense something else. Something _special_. The tick tock of his brain goes off, knows more than he does.

He orders another drink.

Charlie comes down hours later when he and Adam aren’t sloshed but pretend they are, and Adam’s leading a song in Japanese about a whore village that Charlie tells Sylar isn’t for his delicate ears. He sneers at her, tempted at the thought of taking just for the thrill of taking again.

It’s not like he’s (technically) had his redemption yet, or anything.

But Adam spots Charlie and comes over when the song’s finished to order more liquor and orders “one for the lady” that she sends back.

Watching Adam slink over to Charlie and try to wrap his arm around her shoulders awakens something in Sylar, something that’s been waiting for its chance (takes it).

Charlie’s already pushed Adam away once but he keeps coming and Sylar’s fist makes a brief impact with his face before he slams him against the wall, holds him there with his mind. The rest of the drunks make a rush for the exit, yelling about the crazy sorcerer come to their town.

“You too, huh?” Adam chokes out and grins. “Didn’t mean to make a move on your girl, mate. She’s just a girl.”

He hangs there, suspended, while Sylar decides, until Charlie steps up and slowly, calmly puts her hand over his and lowers it. “Let him go,” she says in a firm voice, but which somehow lacks judgment. “I’m ready to go home now.”

Sylar closes his hand around hers and concentrates; they disappear as cannon fire hits the village.

 

He takes them to New York City and leaves her at Grand Central station. “You can find your way?” he asks; doesn’t want to be grateful but somehow is. She gives him a look he knows all too well from another girl and steps forward to give him an awkward hug. “Always.”

She’s gone in a rush of trains and people, and he takes the moment to separate himself from her.

There’s another girl he’s got to see.

_Finis_


End file.
